How to prevent auto detected exercise hogging the display on my Sense 2?

[MarkSG]

I've recently acquired a Sense 2, after my Blaze finally stopped working. There's a lot about the Sense 2 that I like, but there's one thing it does which really, really annoys me and I can't work out how to stop it.

What happens is that when I'm out for a walk, say, it will, after a few minutes walking, auto-detect that I'm exercising. Which is all well and good, it should do. But... it then puts the exercise details onto the screen, in place of the usual clockface tile. Which I don't want. Pressing the button only offers me the option to end or resume the exercise, which isn't what I want either. I want it to carry on recording the exercise in the background, but allow me to switch the display back to the normnal clockface tile (or go to any of the other tiles, such as the daily stats). 

Is there any way to get the Sense 2 to record exercise in the background, without the live exercise data hogging the display? Or is the only way to do this to switch off auto-detect completely?

Moderator edit: clarified subject.

[LZeeW]

@MarkSG   Your Sense 2 has a feature on the Exercise app that isn't on the Blaze.  It's an auto-detection feature that will active the Exercise app.  This is in addition to SmartTrack, the auto recognition feature you are used to using.  BTW, your Sense 2 has SmartTrack, too, and I think that's what you are trying to use.

To turn this feature off:

• Short press the button, then choose the Exercise app
• Select Walk
• Swipe up on the tiny "^" at the bottom of the screen
• Swipe up until you find Walk detect and toggle it off
• Push the button to exit

This feature is on the Run and Bike shortcuts, too.  You must repeat these steps for those two shortcuts if you want to turn this feature off.  I also want to point out another feature that is very different from your Blaze.  When you swipe left/right on the watch face, you are looking at tiles, something new on the Sense 2.  There is a tile with three recently used shortcuts in circles, with an All "button" below.  Those three recent shortcuts are Quick Start shortcuts.  You can't edit them, you can only start.  If you tap on the All, it will open the Exercise app, just like if you short pressed the button.

[harilom]

I don't think the OP wants the autodetection to stop, just the display of it on the screen.

[MarkSG]

Yes, that's correct. If the only way to stop it hogging the screen is to turn it off, then obviously I'll have to. But I'd prefer it to still autodetect, but allow me to view the other tiles while it's running. Although maybe SmartTrack is an acceptable fallback, I'll have to see. It's not very well documented, though.

[LZeeW]

@MarkSG   I'm sorry that I misunderstood your post.  Walk Auto Detect opens and starts the Exercise app.  The Exercise app on your Sense 2 must run in the foreground, just like your Blaze.  Fitbit introduced Run Detect with the Versa.  I think it was in response to requests from runners who went on a run, but forgot to start the Exercise app.  Fitbit expanded it to Walk and Bike with the Sense 2/Versa 4.  If you don't want your Exercise app to open every time you take a walk, then disable the feature.  Then you can pick and choose when you want to use your Exercise app.

[Rich_Laue]

At one point, fitbit auto detected the exercises, and sleep, in the cloud, after a sync. Having this detection moved to the tracker gives the user the ability to turn on GPS. Users had asked for this option. 

Yes, to turn on GPS, requires the exercise app to run in the foreground. 

Some functions originally where in the tracker, and then, to save memory, moved to cloud services.